TNT routed NorthPort, 117-93, on Saturday to pick up its first win in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Philsports Arena.
TNT vs NorthPort recap
Roger Pogoy set the tone for the Tropang GIGA in the first half, and Cameron Oliver put on a show with a couple of dunks as their team bounced back from their two-point loss to Magnolia last Wednesday.
Pogoy finished with 32 points on 12-of-14 from the field. He made all his 10 shots in the first half as TNT took a 58-44 advantage.
The Tropang GIGA pulled away even further in the third quarter after Oliver made three slams to score 20 points in the contest.
Mikey Williams also joined the show in the third and had 19 in his first game of the conference as the Tropang GIGA led by as many as 33 points.
TNT coach Chot Reyes said the game was another opportunity to get their rhythm back after taking a break following their Philippine Cup finals campaign.
“Like I said during the timeout even when we had a big league, I kept reminding the players to play hard dahil kulang kami sa laro,” said Reyes. “We haven’t had a tune-up game. Our last game against Magnolia was the last game we played together as a team and this is the first time that we played together with Mikey, Poy, and Cam.”
“More than anything, it was an opportunity for us to learn to play together,” said Reyes, whose team played without Jayson Castro due to an injury.
Pogoy had 21 points in the second quarter, but had to sit out the final minutes of the game due to cramps.
Arvin Tolentino had 19 points, while Prince Ibeh added 18 points and 12 rebounds, but NorthPort dropped its record to 2-2.
The scores:
TNT 117 – Pogoy 32, Oliver 20, M. Williams 19, Tungcab 9, Erram 8, Montalbo 8, Cruz 7, K. Williams 6, Oftana 4, Ganuelas-Rosser 4, Alejandro 0, Marcelo 0.
NorthPort 93 – Tolentino 19, Ibeh 18, Bolick 14, Chan 9, Ferrer 8, Santos 7, Sumang 4, Balanza 4, Salado 4, Taha 2, Calma 2, Caperal 2, Ayaay 0.
Quarters: 25-24; 58-44; 87-62; 117-93.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
